Tracks: 1. Let There Be More Light / 2. Remember A Day / 3. Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun / 4. Corporal Clegg / 5. A Saucerful Of Secrets / 6. See-Saw / 7. Jugband Blues
Comments:
“A Saucerful of Secrets” was teh second and last Pink Floyd album with contributions from original guitarist and lead-singer Syd Barrett. Drug-abuse and illness gradually prevented Barrett in performing with the band and by the time of the album’s release he had been replaced by Dave Gilmour, who also plays on the album.
Whereas Barrett wrote the vast majority of the material for their legendary debut album “Piper at the Gates of Dawn” his contribution to this album is down to one song and he is absent on more of the other tracks.
Generally the album lacks the charm and inventive songwriting of Barrett’s and apart from his own “Jugband Blues” and Roger Waters’ “Corporal Clegg” there is really not much left of the early Pink Floyd approach.
On the other hand the album leaves more space for the other members, not least bassist Roger Waters, and the album has clear indication of what was to come in the future. “Let there Be More Light” almost sounds like an outtake from later albums such as “Dark Side of the Moon” or “Obscured by Clouds”.
Keyboard-player Rick Wright wrote quiet songs for the album. “Remember a Day” is quite a nice tune and by far the strongest of the two. “See Saw” is more or less forgettable. The title track is an extensive 12 minutes instrumental - more or less random sounds that eventually ( app. 8 minutes ) develops into a nice organ chord progression - actually a pretty longwinded wait.
Compared to their debut album, most people probably will find “A Saucerful of Secrets” a disappointment, but the album has its moments, especially when the presence of Barrett shines through. At any rate the album gives a great insight to the musical transition the band went through when Barrett had to let go of his leadership.
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